Rooftops have become very fashionable in Athens. Every tall building in the centre has turned its top floor into a restaurant, bar or all-day space. Some are touristic, some are more massive, some are more quieter. Generally, there is one for every taste.
The most recent arrivals include Taratsa Athens. It is located on the 7th floor of the new Regal Hotel on Mitropoleos Street. It is a synergy of the all-day Ami team and The Bar in Front of the Bar, while chef Alexandros Karakatsanis is in charge of the kitchen.
Taratsa, therefore, is a bar restaurant that mixes Levantine cuisine in an intelligent and beautiful way, with cocktails and nice music. It is a triptych that is not easy to combine, but it seems they have found a way to do it here.
I mentioned this to you as I had my reservations until I visited. Telling you about the view is unnecessary, but surely, before you sit down at your table, you will take a photo for Instagram of either the illuminated Acropolis or the Metropolis Square from above.
The space is set up so that there are tables that can accommodate large groups and smaller ones for two people. Of course, there is also the bar area where I would advise you to choose if the purpose of your visit is the drink and not the food.
The dishes Alexandros and his team prepare are obviously influenced by Lebanese cuisine, but they also have a dose of Greek.
Shish barak, oriental dumplings which look like ravioli, are filled with minced mutton and served with yoghurt and sumac sauce. They have such a buttery feel and are highly addictive.
The same goes for the very tasty kebab made of minced mutton and beef on a bazlama (fluffy Turkish pastry), which you definitely won’t let go of until it’s finished.
But we also tried other delicious dishes like the baked bean salad, which had sour cheese, radish and a pomegranate molasses dressing, as well as the beef tartare, which is presented as a rectangular ampelondolma with fragrant rice and next to it is a soft mash artichoke.
The pastourmas was also nice, but the cimente that accompanied it stole a bit of its starring role.
A special mention must be made to the shawarma (one of the most famous Arab street foods that resembles the Greek gyro and the Turkish doner). In Alexander’s version, the meat is not in the form of a gyro but pieces of beef brisket cooked in the wood oven.
Next, they have a celery root skewer and wholemeal Arabic pies, which they make themselves.
It comes on a large, impressive plate – it took up almost the entire small table – and with it, four side dishes (yoghurt with tahini, harissa, tabbouleh, and pickled cucumber) so that everyone can make their own special shawarma.
At Taratsa, however, one does not only go up for food but also for a drink. As we told you above, the project is co-signed by the team of The Bar in Front of the Bar (number 51 on this year’s list of The World’s 50 Best Bars ).
So, Alexandros Tselepis and Konstantinos Theodorakopoulos prepare the drinks. They use some ingredients from the kitchen to have a more ethnic flavour, which is more than easy to drink and pleasant.
A typical example is the Negroni made with coffee, mint and bell pepper, which is less bitter and more sweet, or the one inspired by the sour cream ice cream made with mastic distillate and a nice sour cherry cordial that can be closed in a beautiful way your meal.
Info: Mitropoleos 60, Athens, tel. 2110080660
30-45 euros without wine or liquor.
Vasilis Dimaras is a columnist for Cantina. Translated by Paul Antonopoulos.
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